1. Paul (Universal, 2,801 Theaters, 104 Minutes, Rated R): Seeing Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in any film not directed by Edgar Wright seems to veer a little too close to sacrilege for my tastes (same goes the other way too, it just doesn’t seem right).

But yet, here we are, with the pair joined up with Superbad‘s Greg Mottola as a pair of comic book afficiantos making a pilgrimage to the San Diego Comic Con who pick up a rather unique hitchhiker near Area 51, an alien named Paul (voice by Seth Rogen).

Considering the people involved, it should be impossible that the film is not funny at all. The premise is kind of meh, but the cast is good enough to bring some oomph to it.

2. Limitless (Relativity, 2,756 Theaters, 105 Minutes, Rated PG-13): If it wasn’t for one particular plot point, this film would be your typical high finance thriller.

Think about it. A young skilled hotshot enters a corporation. His talent shoots him quickly up into the highest eschelon, and his ego makes him a lot of enemies on the way up. Once his luck runs out and his talent fails him, the wolves begin to circle. Sound familiar?

The twist is that the hotshot’s talent is brought about by a pill that unlocks the untapped potential for the human brain. That kind of sci-fi swerve does add something to the film, but it only barely makes it more unique than your typical Wall Street clone.

3. The Lincoln Lawyer (Lionsgate, 2,400 Theaters, 119 Minutes, Rated R): This might be opening myself to ridicule, but I believe Matthew McConaughey can be a great actor when he wants to be.

Sure, most people when the first think of him, think of him as a stoner characture who’s acting talents would be strained if he goes beyond the realm of the chick flick.

But this is a man who did some pretty fine acting in Contact and A Time to Kill. These were solid dramatic roles and McConaughey excelled in them.

He returns to the legal-potboiler-adapted-from-a-book genre with this one as he plays a lawyer with a client who is hiding something. Not exactly fresh and unique, but could be something that could remind people that McConaughey can really act.

1. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Fox, 4,099 Theaters, 107 Minutes, Rated PG-13): If this movie came out at any time prior to 2006, there would not be as much concern about it. It could have probably just sailed by into theaters without much scrutiny.

However, X-Men:The Last Stand proved that a can’t miss franchise might actually be able to miss after all. And that put an extra critical eye on this franchise extending film.

As a result, you have people making snarky comments that this should actually be the fourth Wolverine movie rather than the first. You also have people questioning where the story fits in. Of course, it is the origin of Wolverine, but he faces off against a different Sabertooth–decidedly not blond and not monosyllabic–than he faced in the first X-Men film.

He also appears to have a run in with Cyclops, a meeting not mentioned in any of the other films–a fact that drives the comic book fan target audience crazy. In addition, the film seems chock full of fan favorite characters from the comics such as Gambit and Deadpool that seem just shoved in. This is always a bad thing (see Batman and Robin and Spider-Man 3).

Add to that a couple disappointing reviews of the script and a controversy over a leaked bare bones version of the film and you have what could be a disaster. I hope it isn’t, but I’m not optimistic.

 
 
2. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (Warner Bros. (New Line)/ 3,175 Theaters, 100 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Is it too early to appoint Matthew McConaughey the king of the romantic comedy? Basically, that’s all he is doing cinematically right now. Usually playing an overgrown adolescent whose heart must be tamed by a beautiful girl.

This latest entry adds a Dickensian twist as Matthew plays a serial monogamist who is forced to revisit all his past relationships. In the process, he finds his one true love is the one he’s about to let slip away forever. 

3. Battle for Terra (Lionsgate, 1,159 Theaters, 85 Minutes, Rated PG): I have to admit, I know absolutely nothing about this film.

I haven’t seen any ads for it, I’ve read no articles, seen no trailers.

Now, I do have a newborn child, which occupies a lot of my time, but I have seen something for all the other films being released this week. This leads me to believe that Lionsgate is burying this film. Bad Lionsgate, bad.

According to IMDB, this is a computer animated sci-fi tale where the last survivors of Earth try to colonize an inhabited planet. The planet’s inhabitants resist and fighting ensues.  So if that floats your boat, maybe you should check this out.